Dating is already a complicated game, but a new study has shown that your choice in mobile operating system can make you less attractive to users of the opposite OS; indeed, the ages-old enmity between iOS and Android seems to extend even to the dating world. The study comes courtesy of Match.com, and states that iOS users are 21 times more likely to judge an Android user negatively in courtship than they would be a fellow iOS user. Android users, meanwhile, are 15 times more likely to hold an iOS user in contempt for any sort of perceived faux pas than they are to fail to forgive a fellow Android user’s dating blunder. It should be noted that the study did not mention other choices of smartphone such as Windows Phone or BlackBerry, nor was it said just how not having a smartphone at all may affect somebody’s standings.
While choice of smartphone OS may be the root of a healthy rivalry and perhaps some good-natured ribbing, it doesn’t usually come up as a complete turn-off. Still, there are a few factors that go into such a figure. For starters, the average iPhone user tends to have higher income than an Android user. Anecdotally, Android users tend to be more tech-savvy, along with all that comes with that territory, so there may also be a gulf in demeanor and interests. It does stand to reason, after all, that most Android users are at least a little bit comfortable with navigating settings menus and customizing their devices, if not going whole-hog with unlocked bootloaders, custom ROMs, and the like. iPhones, meanwhile, are far less customizable.
Another smartphone-related blunder that can cost you a date is having a cracked screen. Accidents happen, but a pristine device can make your date wrinkle their nose. Women were seen as 86% more likely to judge a man negatively for having a cracked screen on their device of choice, and millennials tend to be more forgiving about it than older generations. Typical phone faux pas on a date apply, and it was found that binge-watching the same shows on streaming services, refusing to participate in social media, and making an actual phone call can all turn on a potential partner, while incessant social media use and complaining about life on social media can be a turn off.